bunnyman

[kneesox1]

--note that i do not have one of my keys, you will find out which---

I bou9ht a book recently called Weird US, which is about stran9e sites and le9ends throu9hout the states. i was very amused to open the book and find that the 2nd story mentioned was that of my area's very own le9end from the 70's-- the Bunnyman/ Bunnyman brid9e. it's a le9end very well known throu9hout the northern vir9inia area, and the Bunnyman terrorized my parent's 9eneration in the 70s, they had to be particularly aware on halloween. i also notice that this story tends to be known only to the folks that 9rew up in Northern VA at the appropriate time, and their children. for example, my parents lived close to the bunnyman's 9rounds. my mom was always talkin9 about the bunnyman when i was a kid, and my BF 9rew up here, but his parents did not-- so they didn't know of it and didn't tell him.
anyways, i post this b/c there are many different, confusin9 ori9ins to this le9end and i was wonderin9 if others have heard of this and want to post their version. i've 9ot to run off to class, so i will post more info about the bunnyman if people want to hear about it!

 

[placeholder]

please, PLEASE tell us about bunnyman! i'm getting a vibration of high strangeness from this... :spinning

 

[Peripart]

Well, Ian McCulloch's been in court recently on assault charges, but I wouldn't call him a legend. Mind you, "The Cutter" was a top tune.

 

[GNC]

As long as he doesn't tell us the world is ending in a few days' time...

 

[kneesox1]

who is ian mcculloch?

i'll type out as much as i can here about the le9end for those who are curious. i don't have my Weird US book here with me (it's at home), but i'll see what i can remember, but i'll start off with my mother's childhood version:

The Bunnyman was an axe-wieldin9 man in a bunny suit that terrorized northern VA (i think more specifically around the fairfax/ herndon area, but it expanded) children in the 70's. everyone was always warnin9 each other to 'watch out for the Bunnyman', especially around halloween.
--- the book is more specific about this version of the story: there was supposed to be a house at the end of some lon9 road (i'd have to refer to the book); that was the bunnyman's house. one halloween he dressed up in a bunny suit, lured trick or treatin9 children to his house, and murdered and chopped them up into bits with an axe.
of course, there is no proof or news to back this up, so where did it all start? the author of the book did some research and pulled up a news piece from, i think earlier than the 70's, perhaps the 40's: a couple were drivin9 on a country road, past a house, when a man dressed in a bunny suit came after their car, wavin9 an axe and throwin9 it at their window, yellin9 at them to 9et off his property. apparently, he was upset about the development around the area. a later article says that the man (not sure if he was dressed as a bunny this time) was later cau9ht tryin9 to chop a nearby house to bits. so, did the bunnyman story come from this 9uy who was dis9runtled about development?

so, that's more or less what the locals remember... but wait, there's more!
.... the Bunnyman has his own brid9e.. called, whatelse, the bunnyman brid9e that is somewhat of a tourist attraction. i myself have been to it, haha... but it seems to be that there is a totally different, unrelated story attached to this brid9e, even tho people still tie it with the axe wieldin9 bunnyman. i will post this later..

 

[Peripart]

who is ian mcculloch?

I'll tell you if you promise to fix the "G" and "shift" keys on your keyboard fixed!

Who's on the seventh floor
Brewing alternatives?
What's in the bottom drawer
Waiting for things to give?

Spare us the cutter!

 

[rynner2]

who is ian mcculloch?

I'll tell you if you promise to fix the "G" and "shift" keys on your keyboard fixed!

I second that emotion! 8)

 

[kneesox1]

can't. it's missin9 (my cat's fault, lon9 story) and i used to be able to press the nub underneath, but even that doesn't work anymore. i don't see what's wron9 with my shift key.

 

[Mythopoeika]

New keyboards are very cheap now.
I just bought a very stylish one recently for £20, but I've seen others at around £12. Even cheaper if you live in the US.

 

[RealPaZZa]

As long as he doesn't tell us the world is ending in a few days' time...

i thought everyone already knew that!

 

[jefflovestone]

Well, Ian McCulloch's been in court recently on assault charges, but I wouldn't call him a legend. Mind you, "The Cutter" was a top tune.

They did a lot of top tunes!

There was a whole bunch of Mac the Mouth assult-related gags on PopBitch. :lol:

 

[triplesod]

who is ian mcculloch?

I'll tell you if you promise to fix the "G" and "shift" keys on your keyboard fixed!

Why don't you just tell her who he is instead of playing these daft games? What is it exactly you are trying to prove or have you found something in this that you think is impressive?


Sorry, I don't mean to sound too angry, just a bit frustrated as this sounds like a very interesting story but on top of that this person has obviiously not heard of Echoe and the Bunnymen but I think that is an important link as a "Bunnyman" is not a well known phenom.

Ian Mcculloch was the singer from 80's Liverpool band Echoe and the Bunnymen. I would like to know why they named their band this and what they were thinking was a Bunnyman to see if there is any connection between you.

A Bunnyman has always seemed really creepy to me and I never get creeped. Maybe it is because it is left to my imagination to decide what a Bunnyman is and I always have the plus sign of "no matter how horrible the image of this Bunnyman that I think up, the real thing is just that bit nastier!".

Kneesox. Please tell us more. What do you think a Bunnyman is? How would you picture one and what do you think they would do?

 

[kneesox1]

thanks for comin to my defense triplesod. i was 9oin9 to reply that laptops aren't disposable or cheap, even in the US

so, the other local story. people connect the bunnyman brid9e to the axe-wieldin9 bunnyman, but it's actually completely unrrelated and i think has completely different ori9ins.
in a town called Clifton (near Centreville, northern vir9inia), there is a short railroad brid9e with a tunnel runnin9 throu9h it for traffic. it's only about 30 or 40 feet lon9, and it's completely lined with 9rafitti and outfitted with video cameras-- people like to say that it's to catch the bunnyman makin9 any more murders at the brid9e, but it's really surveillance to keep track of pranksters, as it is a local tourist attraction... but anyway, the version of the story is that an inmate (in some versions there are two) escaped from a bus en route to a local insane asylum. he lived in the woods, livin9 off bunnies, and leavin9 their carcasses (some even say he wore the furs/skins), hence the name bunnyman, but a different one from the one murderin9 children with an axe. here the story 9ets a little fuzzy: in the 2 escaped inmates version, one was later discovered han9in9 from a noose under the brid9e, presumably murdered by the other inmate. in all versions, several teena9ers are invariably discovered han9in9 from the brid9e, all 9utted.
this is where i 9et confused: the book (wierd US) didn't specify whether there were any actual murders that could be confirmed by newspaper articles, however, there are supposed to be 'at least 10 documented murders at the brid9e'. i'm too lazy to actually delve into that de9ree of research, but i wonder if it's out there...

 

[kneesox1]

btw triplesod, it's a 9ood question as to why bunnymen are a stran9e and creepy part of our social consciousness... Jun9 had a name for this sort of thin9, i think archetypes. have you seen Donnie Darko? very 9ood example... wonder where he came from.

 

[James_H]

The first song in "donnie darko" is by echo and the bunnymen, make of that what you will.

 

[Peripart]

Kneesox, sorry that we've got off on the wrong foot. Although I was being slightly facetious with my reference to Ian McCulloch, I did genuinely wonder if the name "Echo and the Bunnymen" (IM's best-known band) was connected with your tale in some way. After all, "Bunnyman" isn't an everyday word, and to me it conjures up a slightly sinister image, rather than something cuddly. And if you read some of Echo & the Bunnymen's lyrics, they are odd, to say the least, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if they were influenced by some odd folk tales.

Also, as H_James says, there is another connection, in that Donnie Darko features not only Frank, the scary rabbit-suited figure, but also an Echo & B song in the soundtrack.

BTW, kneesox, not sure if anyone's already said this, but welcome to the forum (they're not all idiots like me) and if the rest of your tales are as good as this one, your posts will be eagerly read!

 

[Mythopoeika]

Ian Mcculloch was the singer from 80's Liverpool band Echoe and the Bunnymen. I would like to know why they named their band this and what they were thinking was a Bunnyman to see if there is any connection between you.

Echo and the Bunnymen - well, I don't know about the 'bunnymen' bit, but 'Echo' was the name they gave to their drum machine.

 

[ginoide]

"Yeah, that story is rubbish," Sergeant said. "We used to tell the press we got the name from the drum machine, but that was just to shut people up, you know?" We just wanted a name that was completely different, and Echo was just a word we liked," he said. "Now, Bunnymen, there was an idea behind that, of these weird, spirit, bunny things that, like, existed only in folklore. There's one on the cover of our first single, 'Pictures on My Wall.' "

from here

link

and here's the image:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=am ... u06j7o71l0

 

[placeholder]

i must confess i'm feeling a little disappointed. i misread part of the first post and thought it was about Bunnyman and Bunnyman's BRIDE!

silly me! :gaga:

 

[kneesox1]

i must confess i'm feeling a little disappointed. i misread part of the first post and thought it was about Bunnyman and Bunnyman's BRIDE!

silly me! :gaga:

lol! not to worry Peripart, i'm 9lad we've all 9otten on now. i was a bit put off by the first responses about ian Mcculloch, and a (very) cursory 9oo9le search only turned up that he was a sin9er/musician, and didn't mention Echo and the Bunnymen. have never heard of them, as i have pretty narrow musical tastes (and b/c they're a UK band?). i doubt they have anythin9 to do with my bunnyman, as this is a very local, albeit well-known le9end (i 9o to school in a city an hour and 40 min south of my hometown and i was amused to hear one of my friends, who is from farther south, mention him-- turns out she had heard of him from a dorm mate from my hometown!!).
true enou9h, the idea of bunnymen comes off as a bit sinister, i suppose because it is sort of a corruption of the idea of cute, innocent bunnies. i referred to an old newspaper article about the dis9runtled man runnin9 after a car with an axe while wearin9 a bunny suit, and it makes me wonder why he chose to put that on to protest the trespassers, besides to 9ive them a 9ood startle..

 

[mejane]

Here's a source for what I guess is the same (not so local) legend:

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/br ... /bunny.htm

btw, I misread bridge for bride as well

Jane.

 

[kneesox1]

thanks mejane1, i've been too lazy to come up with some actual links on the bunnyman le9end, i was sure there were some but i was content to type from my memory... this is actually an excellent website to help those not familiar 9et acquainted with the 'official' version (not 'kneesox version' althou9h i think i have pretty 9ood recall..)

quote: "Most childhood ghost stories are forgotten as one gets older. However, the Bunny Man followed me. After graduating from college, I accepted a position with the Fairfax County Public Library, eventually becoming an Information Specialist in the Virginia Room. One day around 1992 a very well-spoken young lady came into the Virginia Room with a question. She wanted to know how she could find information on a murder that was supposed to have taken place near her home. As I interviewed the patron to ascertain what hard facts she had to go on, some vague memory nagged at me. Two children were allegedly murdered by a local hermit for trespassing, and their bodies left hanging from a covered bridge. She had no names and only a vague idea of a time frame. The whole story seemed a little fantastic, but the thing that really bothered her was the guy was supposed to be an escaped inmate dressed in a bunny suit. At this point, even though the story had evolved a bit, I recognized the tale from my own youth. We were unable to confirm any of the elements of the story as she or I had first heard it, and I put it down in my mind as a story fabricated to scare children."

this is the part that irritates me, that people are linkin9 two COMPLETELY different le9ends to9ether--- let me clarify, the bunnyman with an axe le9end comes from the story of a hermit threatenin9 trespassers ( the 'news article' in Weird US says he threw an axe at the window of a passin9 car, NOT that he murdered two children)-- is completely unrelated to the escaped inmates who mutiliated bunnies and thus came on to the moniker of bunnyman. (quote:"Forbes claims that in 1904 inmates from an insane asylum escaped while being transferred to Lorton Prison. One of these escapees, Douglas J. Grifon, murdered fellow escapee Marcus Wallster and eventually became the Bunny Man. Not only is the location identified, but also the names of several victims and the dates of their murders. The story ends with a challenge for the reader to check with the Clifton Town Library for verification of the facts"). somewhere alon9 the way, the hermit that threw an axe at the car had those victim's murders, presumably includin9 the two children, attributed to him.
disappointin9ly, even these facts re9ardin9 the inmates and the murders also seem to be false, accordin9 to the link. however, my point is these are two stories out there with completely different ori9ins and somewhere alon9 the way 9ot linked to9ether, as will happen with ULs.

"a. Fourteen different geographic locations are mentioned
b. Eighteen involve the Bunny Man chasing or frightening people, usually children, with a hatchet or ax
c. Fourteen tell of attacks on cars
d. Nine claim he attacked a couple parked in a car
e. Five accuse him of vandalism on homes or buildings
f. Only three mentioned a murder"
-------- this is clearly the supposed ori9in of my mom's childhood bunnyman, but unrelated to the bunnyman brid9e.
i think i can theorize that the part about him choppin9 up trick or treaters with an axe on halloween came from an extreme corruption of the fact that the axe throwin9 incident occurred ri9ht around halloween of 1970.

so there you have it, i summarized important points of the link that mejane1 posted, but i'd su99est readin9 it all the way throu9h if you are interested, it's well researched and seems to pinpoint the ori9in of the axe-wieldin9 bunnyman. BUT!!!!! what about the bunnyman brid9e?!? there haven't been any documentation discovered to confirm that there have been multiple han9in9 murders from the covered brid9e. but it had to have come from SOMEWHERE and i would love to know what...

 

[Iamroachford]

there was a feature on one of those terrible shows with linda blair something like "worlds most scariest place/ghost's/voiceover/overacting', something like that. As far as I can remember, they rounded up a load of American teens, told them a load of history about 'Bunnyman Bridge' dropped them off there in the middle of the night with night vision cameras and then retreated to a safe distance.

Que gravelly voice over from blair (not our Tony) and you had the makings for a really mediocre piece of tv.

And it was just that.

 

[Peripart]

...the disgruntled man running after a car with an axe while wearing a bunny suit, and it makes me wonder why he chose to put that on to protest the trespassers, besides to give them a good startle...

More worryingly, have you considered that he might have been wearing it already - and if so, the mind boggles at why.

Don't have nightmares!

 

[PeniG]

but it had to have come from SOMEWHERE and i would love to know what...

No, it doesn't; or rather, it doesn't have to have come from anything in the external world.

What you are trying to do here is track the storymaking process - the invention, incident, cross-fertilization, memory corruption, inspiration, and misunderstanding that go into creating a particular narrative. Just as you can never step into the same river twice, a story can never be told twice. The process of transcription can fossilize a telling, but even that preserves only the "hard" bits - the "soft tissue" of audience, context, and dramatic skill are lost.

Bridges are liminal areas, like staircases and crossroads. Awful things have to happen on them in stories, whether they ever did in the real world or not. Nobody anywhere in the world ever has to have been hung from any bridge, as long as someone with a storytelling bent looked up at some bridge, somewhere, and saw the possibilities for the space as the scene of such a crime.

Source criticism is a thankless occupation. Ultimately, rain is the source of the Nile.

 

[Iamroachford]

Just as you can never step into the same river twice,

Yes you can, I was in the river Lune three times over the summer........

 

[Degrizzzz]

Hmm yeah Donnie Darko, 1st tune is by e+bm, theres a guy dressed up as a rabbit in it, E+BM did that tune, "The Cutter", an obvious Axe reference..Blimey, how far does this rabbit hole go?

 

[tilly50]

Echo and the Bunnymen were from Liverpool and the local evening paper is the Echo, could there be a connection there??
Also the Echo printed Maud Buddens comic strip "Curly Wee & Gussie Goose". The stories featured animal/human type characters and some of the stories had rabbits as the villains. There were even Curly Wee pantos in Liverpool (I used to go every year as Maud was my dads godmother and we got free tickets). I can remember being quite scared of rabbits after one years panto. :eek!!!!:

 

[Timble2]

Also the Echo printed Maud Buddens comic strip "Curly Wee & Gussie Goose". The stories featured animal/human type characters and some of the stories had rabbits as the villains.

I used to prefer that to Rupert the Bear, they must have been some of the first things I read by myself.

 

[Anonymous]

10 minute Bunnyman documentary here.